Change Focus

LETTERS FROM READERS

October 20, 1997

AS AN eighth-grader at Conway Middle School, I am concerned about the quality of education in Florida. Everyone wants to change the schools and how they are teaching, but nobody wants to hear from the students.

One of the major problems that schools have is that they are focusing more on rules than education. For example, the dress code should be changed. Since Florida has a warm climate, shouldn't students be able to wear what they want? Shorts, a tank top and a pair of backless sandles. Shouldn't this be an acceptable outfit to wear in Florida schools? My point is they should be worried about what you are learning instead of what you are wearing.

Also, I feel that middle-schoolers should have more opportunities to get involved in sports. Everyone loves to play sports. In order to play sports, you must maintain a certain grade-point average. Therefore, if all students were to play sports, they would have to get good grades, which would make our test scores increase instead of decrease. Katie Albright, ORLANDO